Honestly, I used to scoff at the concept of 'Bitcoin Layer 2'. Because there are already Lightning and Stacks in the market, but I always felt they hadn't really taken off. It wasn't until I started paying attention to Bitlayer that I realized it was different from the others.
It doesn't just focus on payment scenarios but is directly aiming for BTCFi. Simply put, Bitlayer wants to turn Bitcoin into a programmable asset like Ethereum. It has the BitVM Bridge to pull out BTC liquidity, a Rollup architecture to support applications, and it created a YBTC model that directly allows BTC to engage in lending and staking in DeFi.
What makes me feel most confident is that it has backing from substantial capital: Polychain, Framework, Franklin Templeton; these are not just ordinary VCs. Since they dare to invest, I think it at least indicates that Bitlayer's position in the BTCFi space should not be underestimated.
In summary: Previously, BTC was like gold lying still, and now Bitlayer is making it into a 'financial machine' that can move.
